Thursday, February 23, 2006

Saurav Ganguly-A Sad End to a Maharaj

The most successful captain of Indian Cricket is snubbed again. Not long ago, he was hailed as the savior of Indian Cricket. Under him we achieved unprecedented heights. He backed his players to the hilt. He was the role model. On fine day, he is portrayed as a bad influence on the youngsters, a liability to the team and most important unwanted by the team management and selectors. Did he really deserve all this? We Indians are very unforgiving and less grateful when it comes to cricket. Past laurels are not an excuse to present failure. True. But did he really get a chance to prove that he is still worth a place in the team? In the recently concluded Pakistan tour, where he got only one test to bat, his performance was better than some of the stalwarts. So much for Chappell’s performance is the criteria. If you happen to read my earlier blog - A letter to Ganguly - you know how prophetic I was.He has been humiliated as no other captain ever has. Once celebrated and elegant left bat, he has been selected to the team as an all-rounder. He has been left to prove himself in the Ranji Matches. He fell from the height of being the successful captain to an unwanted element. Every time the selectors sit, he has been made to wait painstaking before being told that he is not selected.The diminutive More has made one thing absolutely clear. That there is no place for him in the scheme of things. As I said in my earlier post, Dada, it’s time. Why would you want to put yourself through such agony? You were known for your royal ways, the aggression and arrogance. Why bow your head now to these comedians, as one of our former cricketers called them, justifiably? It’s almost sure that we have seen the last of Saurav. If he wants to turn the tables, he has to scores tons of runs in the domestic circuit, which is a rare possibility. There is a cartel working behind the scenes to make sure that he is never selected again. My plea to the self-important More and team is that, just give him one match by which he could go out gracefully. At least he deserve that much. At least.